SDW is a registered investment adviser based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. We are a limited liability company under
the laws of the State of Delaware. We have been providing investment advisory services since 2008. Joseph Schwarz,
Benjamin Wheeler, and Stephen Dygos are the Managing Members of SDW.
Currently, we offer the following investment advisory services, personalized to each individual client:
- Portfolio Management Services
- Financial Planning Services
The following paragraphs describe what we do and what we charge. Each investment advisory service is listed below
and describes how we tailor our advisory services to your individual needs. Also, you may see the term Associated
Person throughout this Brochure. As used in this Brochure, this term refers to anyone from our Firm who is an
officer, employee, and all individuals providing investment advice on behalf of our Firm. Such persons are properly
registered as investment adviser representatives in all required jurisdictions.
Portfolio Management Services
Portfolio management refers to the management of money, including investments. Assets are usually held in what is
called a portfolio. Determining the types and quantities of securities to hold in a portfolio is referred to as portfolio
management.
Our Firm offers discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management services to our clients and prospective
clients. Discretionary portfolio management means we will make investment decisions and place buy or sell orders in
your account without contacting you. These decisions would be made based upon your stated investment objectives.
Non-discretionary portfolio management means we will contact you before a trading decision is taken.
Our investment advice is tailored to meet our clients’ needs and investment objectives. If you decide to hire our Firm
to manage your portfolio, we will meet with you to gather your financial information, determine your goals, and
decide how much risk you should take in your investments. The information we gather will help us implement an
asset allocation strategy that will be specific to your goals, whether we are actively investing for you or simply
providing you with advice.
There are a few ways we might create your investment portfolio depending on what we decide would work best for
you. We may customize a portfolio for you based the goals and risk we determined during the information gathering
process. Or, we might use a predetermined strategy rather than choosing individual securities. Alternatively, it may
be that one of the model portfolios developed by our Firm would be the best fit for your needs.
SDW mainly uses equity securities, exchange traded funds, mutual funds, corporate securities, municipal securities
and U.S. government securities in its portfolio management programs. We may also advise you to invest in various
investment related limited partnerships.
However we construct your investment portfolio, we will monitor your portfolio’s performance on an ongoing basis,
and rebalance the portfolio whenever necessary, as changes occur in market conditions, your financial circumstances,
or both.
As outlined above, discretionary portfolio management services means that once the portfolio has been agreed upon,
the ongoing supervision and management of the portfolio will be our responsibility. This authority is granted to us by
you in a written agreement. This allows our Firm to decide on specific securities, the quantity of the securities and
placing buy or sell orders for your account without obtaining your approval for each transaction. This type of
authorization is done using either the investment advisory agreement you sign with our Firm, a limited power of
attorney agreement, or trading authorization forms. You may limit this authority by setting a limit on the type of
securities that can be purchased for your account. Simply provide us with your restrictions
or guidelines in writing.
The non-discretionary portfolio management service means, as outlined above, that we must obtain your approval
prior to making any transactions in your account.
We recommend that you review the statement(s) you receive from the qualified custodian. If you see something that
is incorrect, please call our main office number, located on the cover page of this brochure.
Financial Planning Services
We offer comprehensive financial planning including portfolio allocation reviews, tax planning, charitable gifting
strategies, risk and insurance analysis, estate and retirement planning and preparation for life transitions including
family wealth planning. SDW strives to achieve a client’s long-term financial goals by implementing a financial
planning process that may include any or all of the following steps:
- Assessment of a client’s present financial situation by collecting information regarding net worth and cash
flow statements, tax returns, insurance policies, investment portfolios, pension plans, employee benefit
statements etc.
- Identification of a client’s financial and personal goals and objectives. Goals or objectives may include
financing a child’s college education or retirement planning. The identified goals or objectives are specific,
realistic, and measurable. All goals include time horizons.
- Resolution of finance related problems. Obstacles to achieving financial independence are identified so that
resolution may occur. Examples of problem areas can include too little or too much insurance coverage,
inadequate cash flow or a high tax burden.
- Plan Design. A written financial plan is prepared that includes recommendations and solutions to any
financial related problems.
- Implementation of the financial plan. The financial plan is finalized and agreed upon. The recommendations
and solutions are executed to reach the desired goals and objectives.
- Evaluation of the financial plan is conducted periodically. The financial planning service provides periodic
review and revision of the plan to ensure that the financial goals are achieved.
Financial plans are based on your financial situation and the financial information you provide to our Firm. If your
financial situation, goals, objectives, or needs change, you must notify us promptly.
We also provide financial planning services that cover a specific area, such as retirement or estate planning. We offer
consultative services where we set an appointment to meet with you for financial planning advice for an hourly fee.
As part of our overall financial planning service, we may propose that the client purchase one or more types of
products that are not part of the investment advisory services provided by our firm, such as insurance products. If
the client chooses to include such a product in his or her portfolio, the firm recommends that the client work closely
with his or her attorney, accountant, insurance agent and other related professionals. Incorporation of the non-
advisory financial product into the client's financial plan is entirely at the client's discretion.
In the event we recommend an insurance product, the insurance product may be obtained from any insurance
provider that the client chooses. The company recommends that clients fully evaluate products and fee structures to
determine which arrangements are most favorable to them prior to making a decision. The company does not receive
compensation for insurance products selected by the client.
You may choose to accept or reject our recommendations. If you decide to proceed with our recommendations, you
may do so either through our investment advisory services or by using the advisory/brokerage firm of your choice.
Assets Under Management
As of March 11, 2024, we manage $542,399,681 in client assets on a discretionary basis, and $10,537,192 in client
assets on a non-discretionary basis.